We can’t get enough costume hoodies around here, and these new Optimus Prime and Grimlock Transformers versions are among the best. The Grimlock hoodie is available for purchase now, but the Optimus Prime version is listed as “Coming Soon”. Hopefully that means before Halloween.
Product Page: Grimlock / Optimus Prime ($60)
In Fate/Extra, Saber's true identity is Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, the Fifth Roman Emperor. She was a notorious tyrant who oppressed all religious forces, especially Christians, and the Roman Senate during 50 to 60 AD. Her rule was so devastating and destructive that some have theorized that the Book of Revelation was written as a reaction against said oppression.
And here I thought all the Sabers were inspired from King Arthur. I'm never going to look at this red Saber the same way again. Thanks again to 4chanatic for sending this in!
Looper is not a film about futuristic gangsters, strung out hitmen or time travel. It's a film about human connection and how the absence of it can destroy you.
Writer/director Rian Johnson lets this existential theme play out against a backdrop 30 years into the future where Abe (Jeff Daniels) has traveled back in time to manage a group of hitmen known as Loopers. Because forensics is so advanced in 2074, it became nearly impossible for the mafia to get away with murder but time travel solved all of that. The mob finds its targets, binds them, puts a sack over their heads and sends them 30 years back in time to be killed by Loopers. For 2074, it's no body, no crime and as far as 2044 is concerned, those people are still alive.
It seems like it all works out pretty well for the Loopers too, who are paid in bars of silver strapped to the backs of each victim. They have fast cars, cool guns, women, drugs. There is one catch though – eventually the Loopers all have to kill their future selves, thus closing their loop. They have 30 years and an untold amount of cash to spend from the time they kill their future to the day when they close their loop and meet their past.
One would think Abe would have a difficult time signing people up for a job that has suicide as a requirement but Abe's smart about who he chooses to recruit. He chooses people who have nothing to lose, people for whom the draw of instant gratification is irresistible. Abe chooses junkies and abandoned street kids.
He chooses people like Joe, our anti-hero played by Joseph Gordon Levitt. Joe doesn't understand what it means to be connected to someone. He's never felt that. His mother sold him to a gang when he was young so that she could buy drugs. Joe's only salvation came in the form of Abe, who gave him a gun and taught him to kill. At times, Joe tries to find moments of connection, like with a prostitute played by Piper Perabo, but Joe is surrounded by people who are just like him, devoid of connection.
In 2044, Joe is a lost cause and he knows it.
But 2072 Joe, played by Bruce Willis, isn't a lost cause. He does know what it means to connect to someone. He's been in love. So when it's time for him to meet his past, he does everything he can to get back to his future. Old Joe does everything he can to get back to that feeling of connection and he needs his past self to help him do it.
This is where the movie takes a slightly unexpected turn. In 2044, Joe is so devoid of connection that he cannot even identify with himself. He sees his future self as a mere obstacle to his present goals. Joe doesn't want to help his future incarnation. He wants him dead and he wants his payday.
Now a marked man himself, for failing to close his loop, young Joe chases his future across Kansas all the while being pursued by the mob. And this is where the movie takes a really unexpected turn and ends up at a sugar cane farm managed by Emily Blunt. It's instinctual to think that her character Sara is there only to inject some romance into the story but her role serves a much deeper purpose. Sara, who lives on the farm with her young son Cid (Pierce Gagnon) , is a mirror image of Joe's mother. She is struggling to connect with the child she abandoned years before for a life of partying, for a life unconnected.
Cid is more than resistant to Sara's affection. Joe grows to see himself in this sweet but emotionally wounded little boy and the two bond over a shared history. However, when it is revealed that Sara's abandonment of her son has had dangerous consequences, Joe wonders if Cid is more like himself than he realized and already beyond saving.
The underlying, and sometimes very overt, theme of connection is truly at the center of the story. The element of time travel is only introduced to open the conversation about human connection and the gangster-like environment provides the catalyst for the story to move forward. The meat of the story is in the philosophical questions raised by the film. What would happen if we lived our lives without feeling connected to someone else? What kind of person would we become? Is it ever possible to recover from that kind of lost human experience or do we forever remain damaged by that void?
The outcome of the film hinges on how young Joe chooses to answer to that question. Throughout the film, Joe never makes the choices you, or his future self, think he's going to make and that keeps the movie fresh and worth the watch.
Remember how smooth David Bowie was with those crystal balls in Labyrinth? Well sadly that wasn’t an inborn skill of the man also known as Ziggy Stardust, but was actually the tremendous talent of a juggler by the name of Michael Moschen.
In the below video, Jim Henson and Bowie discuss the contributions of Moschen to Jareth the Goblin King’s magical allure in Labyrinth and see behind the scenes footage of how Moschen’s hand motion was combined with Bowie’s tremendous stage presence.
Source: The Mary Sue
As FOX studios reworks it’s remaining Marvel Comic properties for the big screen, it looks like they have brought in someone with a little experience with comic books to help out. 20th Century Fox announced today they will have Mark Millar on board to serve as a ‘creative consultant’ as they move forward.
LOS ANGELES, CA. - September 27, 2012.... Marking an expanded commitment to some of its most important franchises, Twentieth Century Fox has brought on comics superstar Mark Millar to serve as a creative consultant on the studio's upcoming projects based on Marvel Comics properties.
Commented TCF production president Emma Watts: “We are excited to be working with Mark. In addition to his groundbreaking Marvel work, he is simply one of the most original voices in comics today and will be an invaluable resource to us and to our filmmakers as we look for fresh opportunities to innovate within our shared Marvel universe.”
Upcoming for the studio is The Wolverine, starring Hugh Jackman, directed by James Mangold; X-Men: Days Of Future Past, helmed by Matthew Vaughn; and a reboot of Fantastic Four, to be directed by Josh Trank (Chronicle).
Well, this is a bit of a development isn’t it. FOX has been lackluster at best when it comes to making Marvel movies. Now they bring the guy who wrote The Ultimates and Civil War, a dude with a self admitted life long obsession with comic books, to over see future of their remaining franchises. Is this a case of studio execs making the a smart and obvious choice? I need to sit down for a minute.
Love or hate what Millar has done on the page or the screen, you have to admit that getting someone who is in fact a comic book nerd to make movies for comic book nerds is a wise choice.
Will Millar create a cinematic universe capable of rivaling the Joss Whedon/Disney/Marvel Studios machine? Does DC/Warner Bros. have any clue what they are doing? (seriously, I have been saying for months DC should find a comic nerd to run the show… do they listen? NO!) It’ll be interesting to see what comes of this.
Source: Deadline
Bringing those incredible action movies we all love to life is no easy task, especially for the actors and their stunt stand-ins who recreate insane and dangerous scenes for our viewing pleasure. Over the year’s we’ve all read tragic stores of a stuntman losing his life while one set or actors injuring themselves when they push too far, and today’s story is no different, but thankfully the injured party is reportedly one the mend.
Jaimie Alexander has been on set in London filming for Thor: The Dark World where she plays the Asgardian warrior, Sif. On Monday she sent out this tweet which had everyone pretty worried,
Today I sustained a pretty horrible injury. I’m lucky I’m not paralyzed. Thank you (with all of my heart) to those who’ve looked after me.
- Jaimie Alexander (@JaimieAlexander) September 24, 2012
There’s been no explanation about what the “pretty horrible injury” was, but Alexander tweeted out on Tuesday that all was well,
Feeling better today! Speedy recovery taking place! Off to see another specialist.A smile on my face Thank you for all the love! XO
- Jaimie Alexander (@JaimieAlexander) September 25, 2012
Received great news today! Meds are kicking in. Awesome funny nurses here at the hospital. Physio tomorrow. All good. #HappySif#Thankful
- Jaimie Alexander (@JaimieAlexander) September 25, 2012
Well, that’s a relief! We here at Nerd Bastards are hoping Alexander recovers quickly, we need her at her fighting best to help Thor defend Midgard, Asgard, and whatever other realms are being threatened in the upcoming sequel.
Source: Blastr
Every day the internet produces an astounding amount of goodies and gems. Most hilarious, some amusing, but all worth at least a few seconds of your time. We here at Nerd Bastards try to bring you the best bits of news and nerdery the webz has to offer, with a bit of snark thrown in. But sometimes not everything makes the cut. Monday through Friday we'll be bringing you our inbox leftovers, our forgotten bookmarks, the nerdy bits that simply slipped through the cracks. You can submit items to Nerdy Bits by emailing us at nerdybits@nerdbastards.com.
ABOVE: R2D2 glass pipe. What the hell would you smoke with tha…..AHHH, never mind, wait, pass that over this way. [Etsy]
Aperture Science sentry turret gas mask. I dunno about you, but I know what I’m going to be for Halloween. [ObviousWinner]
It’s funny… the only difference between this Wonder Woman corset and her actual costume, is the garter straps. What does that say about WW get-up, huh? [FashionablyGeek]
No matter what winter holiday you celebrate, your nerdy festivities aren’t quite complete unless your displaying these TARDIS lights. [NerdApproved]
Velma; Zombie Hunter. She’s here to eat Scooby Snacks and kick-ass…and she’s all out of Scooby Snacks. I’d do Daphne, but I’d be thinking about Vlema. [CBM]
When the Hunger Games gets boring a new challenge is added to the arena. Watch out for the Slender Man! [Hishe]
When geek role play goes wrong, horribly wrong. [GAS]
Buzz Lightyear, Space Ranger, balloon costume. To inflate and beyond! Quick, someone get me a pin… [TDWGeek]
Watch Andy Serkis Read An Excerpt of ‘The Hobbit’ as Gollum. Isn’t that sweet of Andy. He comes down and delivers for the fans. A stand up individual who gave us the voice of one of Tolkien’s most loved characters. [Geek Tyrant]
And now, T-Shirts You Gotta Buy...TODAY! (Before they're gone.)
As his Gangster Squad is in the shop to make it a little less current (meaning that they’re reshooting the climactic shootout in a movie theater because of real-life events this past July), director Ruben Fleischer is looking to his next project: Spy Hunter.
Based on the 1983 arcade game, which has been updated over the years, Spy Hunter’s initial iteration was a race game with firepower, like James Bond meets Grand Theft Auto. Updates in gaming technology saw subsequent games with more spy elements, which should make translating it to the screen that much easier, right? Well, just ask John Woo and Paul W.S. Anderson. They’ve both been previously attached to the big screen version of Spy Hunter.
But Vulture is now reporting that Fleischer has signed on, and is aiming to achieve where Anderson and Woo could not. It’s also reported that he’s looking for new screenwriters to pen the script, so Fleischer, it seems, is pretty serious about getting down to work.
Fleischer is still perhaps best known for the 2009 horror/comedy hit Zombieland, which he followed up with the sophomore slump 30 Minutes or Less. The highly anticipated Gangster Squad is due in theaters on January 11, 2013.
Source: Cinema Blend
Alicia Silverstone and director Amy Heckerling are back together again in the vampire comedy called Vamps. The rest of the cast is full of famous faces like Kristen Ritter, Dan Stevens, Wallace Shawn, Richard Lewis, Sigourney Weaver, Justin Kirk, and Malcolm McDowell. What worries me is that the movie is only getting a very limited theater release, which means that the powers that be don’t have a lot of confidence in the movie’s ability to draw crowds and make money.Then again putting faith in the ability of Hollywood executives to determine the quality of a movie and promote it isn’t an intelligent bet.
The Vamps movie Synopsis:
Goody (Alicia Silverstone) and Stacy (Krysten Ritter) are addicted to the night life, clubbing, hooking up and always looking for the next thrill, all the while keeping a big a secret-they happen to be modern-day vampires. But even with lifetimes of dating experience behind them, the duo realizes they still have a lot to learn about love when Stacy unexpectedly falls for the son of a vampire hunter, and Goody runs into the man of her dreams from decades earlier.
With their destinies at stake, the girls are faced with a difficult choice; give up their eternal youth for a chance at love, or continue to live their uncomplicated fabulously single lives forever.
I get a real 90′s vibe from this movie trailer and although I’d probably watch it on cable on a Sunday afternoon, I doubt that I’d go see this in the theater unless it’s date night and she’s choosing the movie. Check out the trailer below and let me know what you think in the comments section below.
Via: /Film
It’s great when you see a few of your favorite characters being cosplayed at once, but this video catches a huge number of cosplayers all together and it’s fantastic! It’s the work of Distractotron who plans to release new videos every Tuesday. Their first effort is pretty impressive and even includes a cameo from Stan the Man so it’ll be interesting to see what they do next. Thanks to the folks at Distractotron for sending us this tip!
See the video after the break…
Universal Pictures and director Jeff Wadlow have been busy filming Kick-Ass 2 in the Toronto. During production, Jeff himself has been leaking shots through Twitter. One thing he hasn’t leaked we’re the new heroes. Now that the media has seen Christopher Mintz-Plasse in his new Mother F*cker costume, Olga Kurkulina as Mother Russia and Hit-Girl’s sweet new motorcycle people are dying to see Jim Carrey as Colonel Stars.
Thanks to the lax security laws here in Canada we can thank Mr. Will Wong for the video we’re all about to receive.
Don’t worry about all the onlookers shouting and acting up from where Wong was shooting, the stars are all microphoned up so their audio can be fixed up or edited later on. And as for Jim, look at the guy. Give the man some camo, a red, white and blue club and you’ve got one tough looking ex-mafia member turned vigilante capable of kicking the crap out of a riddler.
Also in the video is Lindy Booth and Robert Emms as Night Bitch and Insect Man respectively and both considerably different then their comic book counterparts. I can’t wait how this scene would play out when it’s finally released as some kind of trailer.
Kick-Ass 2, starring Aaron Johnson, Chloe Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jim Carrey, John Leguizamo, Donald Faison, Robert Emms, Morris Chestnut and Lindy Booth, is scheduled for theaters everywhere June 28th, 2013.
Source: Coming Soon, with special thanks to Newscom for the shot of Jim Carrey in costume.
Trapping Force ghosts has to be about a bajillion times harder than capturing regular ghosts. Just a hunch.
Product Page ($25.56 via Shirtoid)
Sure, we were all sent into a tizzy when it was announced that the production of World War Z was going into seven weeks of major reshoots. Compounded by the six month delay in release, the fact that two writers were brought on to pen those rewrites and rumors of bad blood between star Brad Pitt and director Marc Foster, and it seemed that the film, based on the highly popular book of the same name, was in some deep… Well, you know.
Not so, says co-star Matthew Fox. While talking to Collider, Fox said that despite the hiccups, the finished project will be worth the wait:
“And they can have no basis in fact at all and suddenly it become[s] like a notion out there that World War Z is having problems. Everybody who I’ve spoken to that’s seen the film – it rocks, dude; it’s going to kick ass. And the only issue that I’m hearing with the film is that they want to work on the third act; the end of the film.”
Which more or less confirms what’s already been said. Fox went on to say that the third act re-work was about making the film less open ended. Although the studio wants a trilogy of World War Z films, Fox says that the original ending left a few too many threads hanging:
“Obviously it’s supposed to be a trilogy, so they’re, you know I think they’re fine tuning an ending that feels like this movie wraps. In the original script I always felt it was the perfect combination of a complete film on its own and yet at the same time left you going like, ‘Oh my god, we need another installment.’ And so I think they’re just really fine tuning that, and it might require some additional shooting to get it the way they want it. And I hear that Mr. Lindelof has been brought in to help with that.”
What do you think, Bastards? Has Fox assuaged your pessimism about the film, or are you dubious as you still harbor hard feelings about the Lost finale against him?
Too soon?
Source: Blastr
Wanna see Rambo versus a werewolf/hulk thingy? If your answer is “No” then you are clearly in the wrong place (perhaps you should give Cat Fancy a try?) and you are clearly not a Stallone fan-boy. For those of you are interested in this dreamy, geriatric on monster action, YahooNews is reporting that Lionsgate has fast-tracked Sylvester Stallone‘s Hunter.
First announced in September 2009, the Hunter project is back on Stallone’s agenda. He is reportedly in talks with Lionsgate to try and get the films in theaters in 2014. Stallone is slated to be involved as a scriptwriter, actor and director for the 3D-slated movie.
Originally a novel by James Byron Huggins, Hunter is a Sci-Fi story in which a specialized, elite hunter targets a "half-human abomination created by a renegade agency" that is tearing through sparse areas north of the Arctic Circle.
Sounds pretty awesome right? I know, I know… the age thing. Stallone is up there. A 62 year old man hunting -and presumably taking down- a super monster is a tad silly; both in premise and in believability, but, you know what, Stallone has a god-like physique and he’s still a conceivable ass-kicking machine. His last Rambo flick and the 2 Expendables movies are a testament to that. Speaking of which, what a great output of movies those have been. They’re not perfect films by any means, but as action-flick go, they’re pretty top notch. It’s to be assumed such success will continue, unless Sly breaks a hip.
Here’s more on the plot:
A beast is loose somewhere north of the Arctic Circle. It has already decimated a secret research facility and annihilated a squad of elite military guards. And the raging creature is headed south toward civilization, ready to wreak bloody devastation. It is a job Hunter cannot turn down, but he soon discovers that his prey is terror incarnate, a half-human abomination created by a renegade agency through a series of outlawed genetic experiments. It has man's cunning, a predator's savageness, and a prehistoric power that has transcended the ages. And even if Hunter survives its unrelenting hunger for human blood, he'll still have to confront the grim reality that it may have grown immortal.
Source: YahooNews
As their journey continued, Sakura slowly began to regard Syaoran as the most important person in her life. However, Syaoran betrayed the group as he was actually being controlled by Fei-Wang Reed, the sorcerer who cloned him based on another teenager. Sakura later discovered that Fei-Wang was the responsible for splitting her memories and set up the journey to recover them for his own benefit. Nevertheless, Sakura decided to continue their journey because she wanted to save Syaoran. Since then, Sakura became very distant from the group, especially the original Syaoran because of his similarities to the clone.
I don't know about you guys, but I'm still confused with the whole Tsubasa - Reservoir Chronicle world. I can't keep track which character is the clone and which is the original, not to mention the crossover with xxxHolic. I actually prefer xxxHolic over this series. Thanks again to 4chanatic for sending this in!
Yes, Beige!
Tony Stark’s tan casual Iron Man armor, first seen at SDCC this year, takes the center stage in this freshly released piece of production art from Marvel Studios with War Machine/Iron Patriot. To be honest, I am still not totally sold on the new Mark XLVII suit. It’s just so very… beige. It is going to be nano-tech based as the plot of the film borrows from the Extremis arc from the comics, which is cool, I just wish it was more red than not-red. Hey, Iron Patriot/War Machine looks good, right?
Not to nitpick, but the new Iron Man armor still looks a little off to my comic book nerd eyes.
Best to reserve judgement till we see it in action I guess. Speaking of witch, somebody wanna tell Marvel to hustle on giving us something more than a logo teaser trailer to chew on?
Iron Man 3 is slated to hit theaters May 3rd, 2013.
Source: GeekTyrant
Dredd 3D. Another action remake. Judge Dredd was originally a comic, and it was good. It was rewritten with another story line, and it was still good. Then it was a movie, and it was bad. Really bad. Like, Rob Schneider bad. Oh, right, that’s because he was actually in the first movie. Now it's a movie again, and it lacked the comic book back-story and it was low on character development. There was no love story, no lesson-learned and the movie didn't take itself seriously which is OH MY GOD WHY THIS MOVIE WAS SO DAMN AWESOME!
From the very first scene where Dredd shot a scorching assault flare into a hostage-taker's pie-hole and turned him into a human jack-o-lantern (which was beautifully presented to us in stunning 3D and slow motion, bye the way) to the very last scene where Dredd, after 95 minutes, was still relentlessly stomping people's shit into the ground, this movie was one hell of a thrill ride!
MORE AFTER THE JUMP
The movie is set in a post economic-collapse wasteland where the U.S. is now known as the Jersey Sh- um, Cursed Earth. The cities are massively overpopulated, under-governed, and full of crime. Among the 800 million residents of the eastern costal Mega-City One, 17,000 crimes are reported every day. The last bastion of hope for humanity is these one-stop-shop cops called judges. When you screw up, they show up, level the situation, assess your crime and you do the time...or they execute you on the spot. They are the judge, the jury and the executioner. THEY ARE THE LAWWWW.
Judge Dredd is a veteran and resident pissed-off badass in the Hall Of Justice who is assigned to evaluate a failing rookie named Judge Cassandra Anderson, who also happens to be a psychic...and blond...and hot. Shes reserved, emotional, and compassionate. Everything that Dredd is not. The unlikely pair gets called to a crime scene at a 200-floor mega shithole slum apartment complex. What at first seemed to be a routine case turns into an all-out war when they cross paths with a murderous kingpin drug lord named Ma-Ma. She's an ex-hooker turned, uh, businesswoman, and she isn't about to let the judges clean up her act. Ma-Ma's crew lock down the building, and all hell breaks loose. The next hour of the movie becomes an action-packed race against time, with Dredd and Anderson fighting off crazed residents, drug addicts and Ma-Ma's henchmen.
The drug being manufactured is called slo-mo. It's an inhaled chemical that makes the brain think that everything is happening at only 1% of normal speed. The existence of the drug in the movie allowed the film makers to create a tastefully-placed slow-motion cinematic sub-theme scattered throughout the movie, utilizing some extremely beautifully-colored 3d slow-motion cut sequences, focusing on everything from blood, body parts, water to the drug itself. Though the entire movie experience is had with 3d glasses on, it's easy to forget about the effect at times. There's enough slow motion scenes and 3d experience to be noted and appreciated, but not too many as to be a burden or a creative crutch.
The three key players in the film are Judge Dredd (Karl Urban), Judge Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) and Madelaine Madrigal a.k.a. Ma-Ma (Lena Headey). Each of the three actors/characters provides a simplistic, but polarizing character force that steadily holds a push-and-pull effect between good and evil, reserved and explosive, compassionate and judgemental.
- Karl Urban does a great job as the deadpan administer of justice. He can't be bought or intimidated. His job is grueling, unforgiving and relentless. Since Karl doesn't overact, reveal much emotion, and has such a hard-line delivery, it really shines his character through more as a representation of what he stands for than who he personally is as a man. He is the unmovable rock of the law.
- Olivia Thirlby's character, Judge Anderson, is the true antithesis to Judge Dredd. She is a psychic, which makes it hard for her not to become emotionally involved with her cases. She wants justice, she just has a different approach than Dredd, which sometimes results in the use of mental tactics, rather than brute physical force. Olivia does well by playing on her character's sense of heart, and adding some gray into Dredd's otherwise black-and-white world.
- Lena Headey's Ma-Ma is a cold-hearted ice-queen. Her past as a battered prostitute has transformed her into a ruthless leader who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Lena does well conveying just how little Ma-Ma cares about anything or anyone besides her own quest for anarchy and power. Lena's eyes reveal that a part of her might even be looking forward to the day when she gets killed by a judge or another monster looking to usurp her dark throne. Her complete disregard for life shows that she probably died inside a long time ago.
Now, let's break down exactly why this movie is a winner and why the rest of the asleep-at-the-wheel suits in Hollywood should take some advice from this remake action gem.
A good comic book movie writer has the daunting task of cutting down on insider script that most non-fanboys won't understand, while still keeping a sense of the original franchise intact for the hardcore comic fans.
As some of you Dredd comic fans will know, the storylines are pretty involved (Democracy, Origins). They go in depth about the collapse of the old world, describe the birth of the judgment system, and weave various sub-plots involving multiple arch-enemies, such as the undead Judge Death. Put all of that into a 95-minute movie? Imagine having 6 girlfriends (oh, yeah!), and they're all trying to tell you about their bad day at work/the fight they had with their mother/last shopping experience all at once (oh, no!). Has your head exploded, yet?
Alex Garland made a tough call with the script, and essentially chopped most of the back-story, politics, character development, aliens and robots. What was left over from the fat-trimming was a quick story setup, a few good guys, a crap-load of bad guys, and lots of insanely violent, creative, and sometimes hilarious conflict resolution.
Instead of re-writing A Tale Of Two Cities with automatic weapons and motorcycles, the Dredd 3D remake basically focused on a day in the life of Judge Dredd, a futuristic law enforcer. We never learn his name or anything personal about him. We never even get to see his eyes, as he doesn't remove his helmet (a tip of the hat to the comic books). He is an enigma. Judge Dredd is more of a representation of the struggle for truth and justice in a time of utter despair than an actual person. It's simple, it's honest and it leaves more time for Dredd to be snappin' necks and cashin' checks...and shooting people in the face... and setting them on fire, and smashing their heads into concrete walls, literally punching bodily fluid out of them, donating grenades to a good cause, throwing them through windows, off of ledges and against more walls.
In addition to the minimalist framework of the story, another reason that Dredd really held up was because of the movie's own attitude. It purposefully didn't take itself too seriously. Granted, there were themes of extreme violence, fear and pain, but the follow-through of the movie was such that it wanted to acknowledge to the audience that it was just taking you on a ride. It wasn't trying to teach anyone any important life lessons, or hold the main character up on a pedestal. There were a few tongue-in-cheek moments, some self-satire and most of the humor was delivered so dead-pan that you just had to laugh. The occasional jokes were served up to the audience on a silver platter as little treats, quick breaks in the action along the way.
I'm sure that if you went through this movie with a fine-toothed comb, you could find a few faults here and there, but when you're having a blast, who's nitpicking? Who really cares when a you have a huge smile on your face? Dredd 3D was a near-perfect combination of action, violence, humor, justice, and THE LAWWWW!
EDITORS NOTE: review submitted via NB contributor Philip Mauch. @TheRealPJM
The Walking Dead returns to AMC on October 14th which means prepare for promotional onslaught! To begin with we ‘ve got these stunning, up close and personal portraits from the Huffington Post,
I’m so excited for people to meet Michonne. What’ll be weird, as well as interesting, is meeting Michonne through her interactions with Andrea and the Governor – whom Entertainment Weekly has some new shots of you can see below – as opposed to joining the group at the prison. In fact the whole switch up of having Andrea and Michonne separated from the group and set up in Woodbury in the first place is gonna be weird. But I’m excited to see what they do with this twist.
Danai Gurira , Laurie Holden, and David Morrissey, the actors responsible for Michonne, Andrea, and the Governor, also spoke to EW about their characters in Season 3.
Gurira: For Michonne, it's the first time she has opened up since her trauma happened, which occurred at the beginning of the apocalypse. So Andrea is the first person she's really been able to open up to, to love, to care for, take care of. I think there's a lot of yearning in her humanity to be able to do that with somebody. And she's found the person for her.
Holden: She asked a lot of questions at first and she was a bit wary, but the Governor is very seductive - in a calm, loving sense. If you look around, everybody seems happy; there are children playing ball with dogs, and pregnant women walking around happier than clams, and there are cellos in the street being set up for the blues band. It's pretty idyllic.
Morrissey: People in the world that we inhabit need structure, they need to feel safe, and he provides that. And I think any leader of any community has to earn trust. And the idea of power is a really interesting idea of how people keep their power in a community. They keep it in all different ways. They can keep it by being generous, by facilitating your good life by giving you gifts. But they can also take those gifts away, they can be intimidating. They can be powerful, they can protect you from the enemy, whether that protection is just a fight or not, or whether they create the feeling of paranoia in order to suppress it. That is a great game that politicians and power-hungry people do. I think he does all those things. The world that has been created plays into his hands.
What are you most excited for this season?
Source: MTV’s Splash Page, The Mary Sue
Ben Affleck has been at the top of his game in recent years. He’s made the move from a successful Hollywood actor to director and with his latest feature, Argo, earning high praise it looks like Ben is on the fast track to a superstar revival. That revival hasn’t been without it’s missteps though.
Based on the events of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, Agro is the latest in a string of hits for the actor turned director, but a few years ago we couldn’t say the same. The Sum of All Fears, Paycheck, Gigli, the proof was in the titles and Affleck was slipping. Still to this day fans curse Ben’s starring role in the 2003 car wreck, Daredevil.
Fans spit all over the Marvel flop, a film Affleck has since moved on from, but nine years later in an interview discussing Affleck’s transformation into a successful director he looks back on film and admist he didn’t like Daredevil, just like us!
I made a bunch of movies that didn’t work. I was ending up in the tabloids. I don’t know what the lesson is, except that you just have to find your compass. I liked Sum of All Fears. Daredevil I didn’t at all. Some movies should have worked and didn’t. At a certain point, it’s just up to the movie gods. Anyway, this image becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. And I just said, ‘I don’t want to do it anymore. This is horrible. I don’t want to be in this spotlight, this glare, in this way. It’s tawdry, it’s ugly, it’s oppressive, and it’s inane. So I’m going to try to get away.’
And most of the way I did that was by not acting. I said, ‘I’m going to steer myself toward directing. I’m going to do something that takes me toward a place where the work that I do is reflective of what I think is interesting dramatically.’
Oddly it was Affleck’s role as star of the original Superman TV series, George Reeves, in the ’50s drama Hollywoodland that spurned his switch to a more behind-the-scenes role. Much like Reeves, Affleck was on the path to becoming an actor frustrated with his life’s direction and his performance showed the world a much more mature Ben Affleck than we were used to. It, in a way, was Ben’s wake up call.
You know, putting on the uncomfortable, cheesy suit–I understood that. And I understood what it was like to feel limited by perceptions and having ambitions to do things that were more interesting. And also, I got married, and I got older. And had kids. You know, the current of the river of life moves you downstream anyway. But I definitely reject the narrative that says, you know, Bad Guy Turned It Around. My life isn’t Behind the Music. I wasn’t a criminal!
Pretty sage advice for a guy who at one point could do know wrong, but has since shown even Hollywood elite have moments of weakness. If your still hating on Daredevil after all these years it might be time to move on, even Ben’s moved past the events of that year. At least we can all agree he was the bomb in Phantoms.
Thanks to Blastr for letting us know Ben’s true feelings.
Each and every week we scour the Internet for nothing but the best in nerd based art. We leave no digital stone unturned, we poke and prod every net based nook and cranny. Why? Because we love you, and we love to bring you weekly Nerd Art Dumps.
Sometimes fighting supernatural threats just needs a female touch, so why not have suit up occasional ghost buster and resident Ghostbuster‘s secretary Janine Melnitz to tackle the ghosts and goblins. Nothing sexier then a woman in uniform, right fellas? Judging by the boys reactions though they need to step up their game, otherwise they’ll be looking for a new job (again!) [Deviant Art]
Hit the jump for Pokemon, Lord of the Rings and MOAR
Bradwich McGinity crafted these sweet anatomy illustrations featuring cross-sections of the Predator, Xenomorph aliens, the aliens from Mars Attack and an adorable Mogwai. Thank you Bradwich, for giving us a new supply of nightmare fuel. [Obvious Winner]
Everyone knows that the tests in Portal can be bat shit tough for those of us who can’t do puzzles, but for Chell they didn’t start out so bad. Artist Sinobali decided to show us what the first test could have been, a simple chess game between man and machine. Methods in testing took a much more sinister after this so odds are GLaDOS got her mechanical butt whooped. [Dotcore]
The Jedi training sequence from Empire Strikes Back would have been way different if Yoda was zombie. Deviant artist MartyDMF put together this PG-13 piece of gore showing us just how different master the force would be with a rotting space alien on your back. Wait twenty years, we’ll probably see this scene when George Lucas brings out another Star Wars “Special Edition”. [Geek Tyrant]
Take the Amazing Spider-man, focus it on Gwen Stacy, kick out all those action sequences and you’ve got “Radioactive Love”, Ant Lucia‘s comic book answer to Twilight (not really). Taking the whole pin-up girl trend and mixing it with Marvel‘s young couple Lucia made something any teenage girl with a love of comics would want. Maybe the guys would too, but who wouldn’t want Spider-Man to enjoy a perk of being the hero. [Nerd Pride]
Pokemon, we’ve watched the shows, played the games, some of us still have the original trading cards from before everything went over 151. These pocket monsters always vary in size so artist Arvalis took it upon himself to give us an accurate size for a few of these super powered beasts. Arvalis has only done five of these right now so the hard part is over, that just leaves another 644 left to be sized and drawn. Good luck buddy. [Deviant Art]
Blending Star Wars with the child-like fun of Winnie the Pooh James Hance made a series perfect for an parent to introduce their kids to science fiction. Called ‘A Most Bold Adventure’ James perfectly translated Han Solo into a little youngster with a mini Chewbacca and R2-D2 Piglet. Even the AT-AT as the lovingly depressed Eeyore is perfect for the image. Might as well send James your money now. [Comics Alliance]
The Hulk is one tough son of a bitch in his own right, but even the strongest hero in the Marvel universe has some he look’s up to. Taking Popeye and tattooing him on your skin is pretty bad ass, but the bad thing is when he turns back into Bruce Banner the tattoo changes into Albert Einstein. [XombieDRIGE]
Uh oh, look’s like Batman fallen to the feminine charms of Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn – or he just has one too many of those poison kisses. Either way it’ll look like Gotham City is going to be taking a break from the crimes tonight. Hell, just look at Harley, she might have just found out what Batman’s been hiding under all that Kevlar and body armor. [Geek Tyrant]
Poor Gollum, he finally gets the ring in his possession after all those years only to fall into the very lava that destroys it. So Nino-Candeias decided to drawn him at his final moment, in all his naked glory, cheering as he and the ring burn away. We have seen the uncensored the image ourselves and chosen to censor the image here on the site. It’s not because we feel seeing Gollum’s real “precious” would be rude, it’s that we just don’t want scar the J. R. R. Tolkien fans for life by showing off tiny Stoor Hobbit wang. [Deviant Art]
This is going to be a full season of fun and surprises. There are new characters, returning characters, and with Robert Kirkman, one never knows which way the shit will fly once it hits the fan.
Check out the trailer below and let us know what you are excited about seeing in the third season of The Walking Dead in the comments section below.
This Catwoman shirt is not your average tee. It has bat wing sleeves, a zigzag hemline, and a little sparkle. Fancy.
Product Page ($67 via CA)
I really hoped that after the success of The Avengers, directer/writer Joss Whedon would go and make the long awaited follow up to Firefly. Alas, the dude is a little busy being the supreme overseer of Marvels cinematic universe. He’s currently in the process of developing The Avengers 2, a S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series, and will also serve as a creative advisor on all of Marvel’s other movies in the Phase 2 plan. Ginger in charge, eh?
In a recent interview with 24 Hours, Whedon talked about his role in the second phase of Marvel master movie plan and the themes of The Avengers 2:
The creation of the team is not the happy ending. It is the beginning of something that is complex and difficult, and now I get to dig a little deeper. And maybe, while I’m digging, just twist that knife. And that’s exciting for me.
He then goes on to discuss what his role will be in Phase 2:
“Very talented people are writing and directing these movies, and what I don’t want to be is the guy they dread, who’s going to come in and say ‘Oh, well I have the power to say change this.’ I’m not that.”
What was all that about knife twisting? Is he going to kill more people!? Should I get my black armbands ready? As far as his input on the rest of the Marvel-verse, I say “Is Joss Whedon going bald, or is that his ego protruding?” Jokes aside, I’m glad he has a say. It’s a nice security blanket.
Source: [24 Hours]
Sure the release dates keep getting pushed back and there’s also all that talk about a fourth movie in the series, but right now filmmaker James Cameron is putting his focus on penning the back to back sequels to Avatar, the number one money-maker of all time in film.
While talking to Coming Soon, Cameron reiterated his plan to take us into Pandora’s oceans in the sequels, and the director says that his focus on the new setting is to draw parallels with environmental issues here on Earth as opposed to creature-porn with all the weird and wonderful species “Under Da Sea!” on Pandora.
"We're doing 'Avatar' films now, so we're making up an ocean ecosystem for Pandora. That's gonna have less to do with the deep exploration that I've done than it has to do with my concerns about conservation of Earth's oceans. The fact that we're basically overfishing, climate change... a few degrees of temperature rise are gonna basically take out the coral reefs. All those beautiful images of the coral environments we all grew up with won't exist in 50 years at the rate we're going in terms of pumping greenhouse gases into the environment. These are the things that concern me."
"I hope that explains it, 'cause people have connected the dots directly together. 'Oh, going to the challenger deep has a direct connection to what we're going to see in Avatar 2,' and that's not the case at all. It's all the scuba diving I did before I even started the deep ocean stuff that has more of a direct connection to Avatar 2 & 3, which by the way won't take place completely in or under the water. That's just part of the environment of Pandora that we're going to see."
Another thing that Cameron’s conscious of: finding the right place to break the story between the scripts for Avatar 2 and Avatar 3. Here’s what Cameron told Hero Complex:
"It's a little bit of a daunting writing task because it's two scripts and they've both gotta be done at the same time... I'm writing it as separate stories that have an overall arc inclusive of the first film. I don't want to suffer from the 'Matrix 2 problem, where it just ends, like, what the hell? It's gotta end. There's gotta be a sense of conclusion, but also a sense that the journey will continue, and that's a fine line."
I’m right there with you, Jim. I remember seeing The Matrix Reloaded in the theater and sitting in my seat stunned for a couple of minutes trying to comprehend how the movie suddenly ended where it did, while trying to remember for the life of me who that guy who was unconscious next to Neo. Hopefully, Cameron is a more skillful writer than Wachowskis. Of course, he did turn the story of Pocahontas into a Star Wars pastiche and made a mint doing it, so anything’s possible.
Source: ScreenRant
